A Different Approach
Hello, everyone. Reilly Hendrix here.
Just a head's up, this contains serious matters I usually do not talk about. Unfortunately, there's no way around these particular topics. I recommend you to read this in its entirety, but if you'd like to skip this particular blog post, I understand.
●●●
There's something I wanted to do in quite some time that would change how I post the content I make and, as a result, how I ran things before.
Why this reason has popped up in recent weeks is because of a serious matter I keep dealing with constantly. It has come to the point where I feel the need to do something about it.
The serious matter I'm talking about here is my BSFE art.
Before we go on any further, I should point out a few things.
Firstly, no, that was not a typo.
Secondly, I should elaborate on what I mean by BSFE art. BSFE or "Barely Safe For Everyone" art is art that has a sexual/violent/serious undertone to it, but still remains a little safer compared to what you'd think would be in NSFE art. Examples between BSFE and NSFE art include comparing tasteful nudity to graphic sex, murdering someome with a gun to pulverizing someone to a bloody pulp or debating about fascism to advocating for fascism. In other words, this is how I define what mature art is. This is all a personal definition of mine and yours might be different, which is fine in the grand scheme of things. If you'd like to see the specifics of what BSFE art is, at least to me, I have My Personal Content Spectrum for that: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SzD6Y-eU2hSokyp6j2uxN19XqXK25QZTmXE4tXpSohQ/edit?usp=drivesdk
Anyways, getting back to what I was saying, I have been dealing with existential dread with BSFE art after I first experimented with it in mid-2022, which started with me making fan art of Rotten Strawberry's Rule 63 versions of Talking Tom And Friends. Funny thing is, I didn't consider it to be BSFE art immediately after its conception because the FCs were already made in a featurelessly SFE nude expression. Nowadays, I admit I may have put a little too much detail to the point it became BSFE. From there, I went into this spiral, making BSFE art to BSFE art throughout the rest of 2022, making things like a voluptuous alien, a himbo version of Jar Jar Binks, an ambiguously nude anthropomorphic shark and a couple of BSFE OCs I have thought up of for quite some time. Eventually, though, at the very end of 2022, I decided "Maybe I should step back a bit," and decided to tone it down from there.
●●●
Now, at this present moment of 2024, I sit back and think to myself, "Do I regret making all of that BSFE art?"
Suprisingly enough, I would say, "No, not really." In fact, more often than not, I actually ENJOY making BSFE art.
Why this is the case, I don't actually know. However, I DO have some theories about why this is the case.
1. The most probable reason why I think I love making BSFE art is because I do not necessarily consider myself a fan of NSFE art. Though I do admittedly lurk/interact with NSFE artists and look at their NSFE art as a result, I feel more disgusted than joyous whenever I look at it. The main reasons why I subscribe to these artists is because I like/love their OCs and the art styles that come with it, not necessarily what the artists do with them. Morever, though I do recognize that at least some NSFE artists are trying their best to make a living with the talents they have at their disposal to earn the money they absolutely deserve, I personally appreciate and enjoy them more when they DON'T make NSFE art (especially the illegal kind). I guess what I am trying to say here is that I feel like the world would be better off if it had more of something more tasteful than NSFE art, especially since NSFE art can make a debauchery of everything we know and love (not to mention popular franchises).
2. The less probable reason why I think I love making BSFE art is because I consider myself an intellectual who yearns to explore new topics, especially controversial or bad ones. Though I do recognize the dangers of exploring these topics, it'd be restricting to only make SFE art, especially when life itself is not like that.
3. The least probable reason why I think I love making BSFE art is the overwhelming reality that sex (or, to put it more accurately, provocative imagery) sells. Though I don't know why this is the case and, honestly, I wish it didn't, I see this as somewhat a useful thing. Though I'd prefer this should be changed for the better, right now, I'll just play the game with the cards I've been dealt with.
Because of at least a couple of these reasons, I have fueled my reason to make BSFE art. So... why do I still feel existential dread about this?
As I have written above, it's not because of how I feel about myself. On the contrary, it because of how others would see me. At this point, my family, coworkers, friends and online friends know I have an online art hobby and only a few, my parents, some friends and some online friends, know about my BSFE side. I'm scared to see what everybody would think of me if they knew I drew BSFE art or, as they would probably say, "mature" or "NSFW" art. The thing is, I don't draw BSFE art frequently. I draw safer versions almost all the time because I know for a fact that not everybody likes BSFE art, let alone NSFE art. I want to be known as the cartoonist that wants to explore, learn and grow, not the cartoonist that draws kinks, fetishes and paraphilias.
●●●
With all of these thoughts racing in my head, over time, I decided to do something about it. It was and is time to take a different approach on how I post my content. It took me a while to figure it all out, but I believe I have come up with a plan that just might work.
Basically, what I want to do from here on (and possibly forever, who knows) is to post all of my BSFE art into some sort of site only a few can access if they want to.
Originally, I wanted to do this in sites like Fur Affinity or e621. There are problems with those sites, however.
• Sites like Fur Affinity make it easy to look at all of the art by simply making an account (well, unless if there is a restriction for those under 18, but still).
• Sites like e621 are even worse because those make it easy to look at all of the art WITHOUT an account.
With those put into mind, the best course of action, at least to me, is to post them to a subscription service site. That way, not only do people have to make an account in order to see my BSFE art, they also have to pay for it (if you catch my drift). I was thinking either SubscribeStar or SubscribeStar Adult because sites like Patreon, Ko-Fi or Buy Me A Coffee are either puritanical or are becoming puritanical. How expensive they're going to be, I'll figure it out later.
With all of this laid out, this leaves the question of how I am going to post content that's not in SubscribeStar. Fortunately, the solution is easy enough. I'll just make safer alternatives of the BSFE art I want to make outside of SubscribeStar and ensure that all BSFE work from Toon Comm is a private request only. Perhaps I'll provide and partake in more opportunities for BSFE art in Toon Comm and in other opportunities. Only time will tell.
●●●
After all what I have said, another question pops to mind. "Wouldn't it be better to just delete all of it from the internet and pretend it never existed?"
Maybe, and yet, maybe not. After all I have created, the last thing I want to do is lie to you. If I deleted all the BSFE art and told you the truth, you probably would not believe me. Besides, I like making BSFE art, so I have no intention of stopping soon and, of course, nothing can ever truly be deleted from the internet. Though I may have lost my faith in Roman Catholicism about a year ago (which is a story for another day), the internal feeling of doing something right despite my corrupted conscience is still there. I want to be me, but in a way that show the best version of me first and foremost. I believe this is the best way to go.
Of course, with a risky decision like this, I would certainly love your input via Google Forms: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1lvjrdqWkOoDTwyMfgkhB2O2j7gXywJ3D9iwVbBFJe5g/viewform
With all that said, thank you for making it this far and reading this in its entirety. I truly appreciate it. I hope you have a good day today. Bye for now.
Just a head's up, this contains serious matters I usually do not talk about. Unfortunately, there's no way around these particular topics. I recommend you to read this in its entirety, but if you'd like to skip this particular blog post, I understand.
●●●
There's something I wanted to do in quite some time that would change how I post the content I make and, as a result, how I ran things before.
Why this reason has popped up in recent weeks is because of a serious matter I keep dealing with constantly. It has come to the point where I feel the need to do something about it.
The serious matter I'm talking about here is my BSFE art.
Before we go on any further, I should point out a few things.
Firstly, no, that was not a typo.
Secondly, I should elaborate on what I mean by BSFE art. BSFE or "Barely Safe For Everyone" art is art that has a sexual/violent/serious undertone to it, but still remains a little safer compared to what you'd think would be in NSFE art. Examples between BSFE and NSFE art include comparing tasteful nudity to graphic sex, murdering someome with a gun to pulverizing someone to a bloody pulp or debating about fascism to advocating for fascism. In other words, this is how I define what mature art is. This is all a personal definition of mine and yours might be different, which is fine in the grand scheme of things. If you'd like to see the specifics of what BSFE art is, at least to me, I have My Personal Content Spectrum for that: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SzD6Y-eU2hSokyp6j2uxN19XqXK25QZTmXE4tXpSohQ/edit?usp=drivesdk
Anyways, getting back to what I was saying, I have been dealing with existential dread with BSFE art after I first experimented with it in mid-2022, which started with me making fan art of Rotten Strawberry's Rule 63 versions of Talking Tom And Friends. Funny thing is, I didn't consider it to be BSFE art immediately after its conception because the FCs were already made in a featurelessly SFE nude expression. Nowadays, I admit I may have put a little too much detail to the point it became BSFE. From there, I went into this spiral, making BSFE art to BSFE art throughout the rest of 2022, making things like a voluptuous alien, a himbo version of Jar Jar Binks, an ambiguously nude anthropomorphic shark and a couple of BSFE OCs I have thought up of for quite some time. Eventually, though, at the very end of 2022, I decided "Maybe I should step back a bit," and decided to tone it down from there.
●●●
Now, at this present moment of 2024, I sit back and think to myself, "Do I regret making all of that BSFE art?"
Suprisingly enough, I would say, "No, not really." In fact, more often than not, I actually ENJOY making BSFE art.
Why this is the case, I don't actually know. However, I DO have some theories about why this is the case.
1. The most probable reason why I think I love making BSFE art is because I do not necessarily consider myself a fan of NSFE art. Though I do admittedly lurk/interact with NSFE artists and look at their NSFE art as a result, I feel more disgusted than joyous whenever I look at it. The main reasons why I subscribe to these artists is because I like/love their OCs and the art styles that come with it, not necessarily what the artists do with them. Morever, though I do recognize that at least some NSFE artists are trying their best to make a living with the talents they have at their disposal to earn the money they absolutely deserve, I personally appreciate and enjoy them more when they DON'T make NSFE art (especially the illegal kind). I guess what I am trying to say here is that I feel like the world would be better off if it had more of something more tasteful than NSFE art, especially since NSFE art can make a debauchery of everything we know and love (not to mention popular franchises).
2. The less probable reason why I think I love making BSFE art is because I consider myself an intellectual who yearns to explore new topics, especially controversial or bad ones. Though I do recognize the dangers of exploring these topics, it'd be restricting to only make SFE art, especially when life itself is not like that.
3. The least probable reason why I think I love making BSFE art is the overwhelming reality that sex (or, to put it more accurately, provocative imagery) sells. Though I don't know why this is the case and, honestly, I wish it didn't, I see this as somewhat a useful thing. Though I'd prefer this should be changed for the better, right now, I'll just play the game with the cards I've been dealt with.
Because of at least a couple of these reasons, I have fueled my reason to make BSFE art. So... why do I still feel existential dread about this?
As I have written above, it's not because of how I feel about myself. On the contrary, it because of how others would see me. At this point, my family, coworkers, friends and online friends know I have an online art hobby and only a few, my parents, some friends and some online friends, know about my BSFE side. I'm scared to see what everybody would think of me if they knew I drew BSFE art or, as they would probably say, "mature" or "NSFW" art. The thing is, I don't draw BSFE art frequently. I draw safer versions almost all the time because I know for a fact that not everybody likes BSFE art, let alone NSFE art. I want to be known as the cartoonist that wants to explore, learn and grow, not the cartoonist that draws kinks, fetishes and paraphilias.
●●●
With all of these thoughts racing in my head, over time, I decided to do something about it. It was and is time to take a different approach on how I post my content. It took me a while to figure it all out, but I believe I have come up with a plan that just might work.
Basically, what I want to do from here on (and possibly forever, who knows) is to post all of my BSFE art into some sort of site only a few can access if they want to.
Originally, I wanted to do this in sites like Fur Affinity or e621. There are problems with those sites, however.
• Sites like Fur Affinity make it easy to look at all of the art by simply making an account (well, unless if there is a restriction for those under 18, but still).
• Sites like e621 are even worse because those make it easy to look at all of the art WITHOUT an account.
With those put into mind, the best course of action, at least to me, is to post them to a subscription service site. That way, not only do people have to make an account in order to see my BSFE art, they also have to pay for it (if you catch my drift). I was thinking either SubscribeStar or SubscribeStar Adult because sites like Patreon, Ko-Fi or Buy Me A Coffee are either puritanical or are becoming puritanical. How expensive they're going to be, I'll figure it out later.
With all of this laid out, this leaves the question of how I am going to post content that's not in SubscribeStar. Fortunately, the solution is easy enough. I'll just make safer alternatives of the BSFE art I want to make outside of SubscribeStar and ensure that all BSFE work from Toon Comm is a private request only. Perhaps I'll provide and partake in more opportunities for BSFE art in Toon Comm and in other opportunities. Only time will tell.
●●●
After all what I have said, another question pops to mind. "Wouldn't it be better to just delete all of it from the internet and pretend it never existed?"
Maybe, and yet, maybe not. After all I have created, the last thing I want to do is lie to you. If I deleted all the BSFE art and told you the truth, you probably would not believe me. Besides, I like making BSFE art, so I have no intention of stopping soon and, of course, nothing can ever truly be deleted from the internet. Though I may have lost my faith in Roman Catholicism about a year ago (which is a story for another day), the internal feeling of doing something right despite my corrupted conscience is still there. I want to be me, but in a way that show the best version of me first and foremost. I believe this is the best way to go.
Of course, with a risky decision like this, I would certainly love your input via Google Forms: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1lvjrdqWkOoDTwyMfgkhB2O2j7gXywJ3D9iwVbBFJe5g/viewform
With all that said, thank you for making it this far and reading this in its entirety. I truly appreciate it. I hope you have a good day today. Bye for now.
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